HOW TO PITCH A TV SHOW TO NETFLIX & NETWORKS

Speaking of “the binge factory,” as we were just a couple of days ago, Script Reader Pro is one of the best script service sites around, and this is one of the best guides to successfully pitching your series that this TVWriter™ minion has ever seen. But I’ve already taken too much of your time so all I’ll add now is, “Dig in!”

Dammit, Munchman, how many times do we have to tell you to stop using this pic? It’s not this kind of pitching!

Learning how to pitch a TV show is just an important skill to learn as writing the script itself. If you’re hoping to break into the world of television as a writer, you can write the best pilot in history, but if you don’t know how to pitch it, it’s unlikely your show will get produced.

Apart from great writing, you need to be able to convince the financial gatekeepers (read: executives) at any cable, network or reality channel that your idea has the originality, longevity and “wow-factor” to turn it into a successful series. And to turn over a tidy profit.

To do so, you will need to learn how to pitch a TV show, but what does “pitch” mean exactly?

What kind of pitch should you put together in order to sell them on your big idea?

What should you include in such a document?

How should it be tailored to suit the particular entity you’re pitching to?

Below, we’ll aim to answer these queries by running through the means and methods behind pitching a variety of documents to a variety of TV formats and mediums.

In this post you will learn:

The #1 thing that makes a successful pitch to a TV show

How to create a pitch document

How to pitch a TV show to Netflix and other streaming and cable platforms

How to pitch a TV show to a network

How to pitch a reality TV show

Why writing credits are so important when pitching TV shows

We’ll also include a TV show pitch example in each section so you also get an idea of what you should be creating as part of the pitch process. So let’s dive on in…

How to pitch a TV show: the #1 thing you should have

Of course, just like with a feature screenplay, it all begins and ends with the concept.

A TV script lives and dies by its concept: the core idea behind the show that will make people want to watch the pilot and keep watching the series.

The cable and streaming world in particular have never been bolder creatively than they are today, so you must really put in the effort to make sure your show’s concept stands out from the pack….